Sins of the Fathers
by BlueMew
Summary: The child of Bellatrix Lestrange and Lord Voldemort has a notorious legacy to overcome.


_"My Lord… It worked." Bellatrix Lestrange's features were soft as she gently clung to her master's sleeve, her eyes upturned to gaze lovingly in to the hellish slits. "I truly will be your favorite. I'll offer my son to your service; your legacy." She smirked. "Your heir."_

_She did not flinch as Nagini curled between her feet or as the deathly-cold hands touched her cheek. "That much was never in doubt, Bellatrix." Red eyes narrowed as they met hers; his lip twitched slightly. "You're not telling me the entire truth, are you?"_

_"M'Lord, why would I lie to you? I have no reason to do such a thing!" Bellatrix fell from him as if she had been struck, her hands moving to her slightly enlarged abdomen. "He's YOUR son! I have not even touched Rodolphus since our wedding night!"_

_"I know the child is mine, dear Bella. I just do not think you received the news you desired to hear as you were masquerading as Andromeda at St Mungos today."_

_"M'Lord?"_

_"It's not a boy, is it, Bella?"_

_"I…" She was terrified, that much was obvious from her trembling. He was correct; Bellatrix Lestrange was hiding a major secret about the child; his child. "The doctor said it's a girl. I… I'm sorry. I'm certain there is some spell that can change-"_

_"Do not bother." Lord Voldemort seemed to glide as he moved toward the door. "A Dark Lady would be far more… unassuming. We'll keep the plan moving forward, Bellatrix. Hide the pregnancy. Live with your sister. Keep the child in the shadows until the proper time comes to reveal her true identity; she would be far too easy a target for Dumbledore and his precious Order."_

"Oi!" Draco leaned over to pinch the dark haired child's nose as she slept, covering her mouth with his palm. "Katerina! Mother wants to see you downstairs."

Katerina awoke with a start, slapping at her elder adopted brother's hands as she was startled awake by the lack of air. He removed his hand as she sat up and moved to the edge of the bed, chuckling as he watched her mutter curses, mainly about how she planned on telling Astoria about his treatment of young children.

"What does mother want? I'm not going to sit through another boring tea party again. I'd rather go see Teddy."

"Teddy Lupin is a self-righteous git and you deserve a better friend than him."

"Teddy's our cousin and about the only person mother lets me visit. He has to be my friend." Katerina jumped from the bed, rubbing her eyes as she grabbed a dress from her closet and started to change in front of her brother; she still apparently wasn't to the age where shame and modesty became important. "You know, mother still worries I'm going to slip and say who my real father is. I'm not stupid; I know what he did."

Draco stood, wondering if he had been this… aware… as a six year old. Probably not, from the stories he had overheard his mother and father telling to people over the years. But then again, he wasn't adopted. He had his father's eyes and hair, and his mother's jaw and build, and never once had to ask about who his parents were, what they did with their lives, why they died, or worse, if they actually loved him.

Granted, his parents had taught him a valuable lesson of silence when as a four year old, he paraded downstairs in his father's Death Eater robe and mask and was ushered out of the room immediately before his father's boss from the Ministry arrived for dinner. Lucius and Narcissa both made certain he wasn't able to sit for a week, but he had learned his lesson… at least to keep his actions under control in front of his parents.

He doubted he would have been able to keep his mouth shut had he been the Heir of Slytherin.

"Well, I'm sure mother's just going to take you out to buy something for your birthday. I know we're having a party for you Saturday afternoon, but you know Mother. We've always had to act surprised even though she takes us to buy our perfect present."

They both smiled at the joke. Draco stood, looked at her hairbrush, and then grabbed his wand instead. With a quick flick of the wrist, her hair had been properly untangled and coiffed so that a trail of long dark curls would bounce behind her as she walked.

"Go on. Father and I are moving my stuff to the flat in London. I'll be moving out, but if you ever want to visit, send an owl, or just ask someone to bring you over, ok? You're welcome any time."

She smirked as she turned around to face her cousin turned brother. He had learned to control his reaction to how the light hit her eyes, but each time he saw the glint of red coming from her young face, it still chilled him to the core. "Marry her soon. I want someone to play with that isn't Teddy."

Katerina left the bewildered Draco in her room, running full speed down the hallway. She had a white cat, Merope (a name she didn't know exactly why she picked… it just sounded right at the time), and scooped her up as she hurried down to the foyer where Narcissa would be waiting. She really hoped that Mother would take her shopping; she wanted to get some toys for Merope, some new books for herself, and maybe a little cauldron so she could start practicing for Hogwarts. She was going to start school at ten; a year earlier than most students, but that was so she could be with her cousin Teddy. That was what Narcissa wanted, Lucius supplied the galleons, and so the school listened.

She slowed her gait to a proper walk as she reached the stairs, Merope purring contentedly in her arms. Narcissa stood near the doorway; a black travelling cloak resting neatly over her shoulders. She could see a sliver of emerald green peeking out from under the cloak. Mother's hair was down; this in itself was unusual.

"Katerina, how many times have I told you not to pick up the bloody cat before we go out? You get little white hairs over everything." Narcissa held up her hands as the cat was offered to her. "Stars no! Don't give her to me! Just put Merope down. You can play with her later."

Katerina did as she was told. "Sorry Mother."

"It's no matter. We're just going to see Mr. Borgin and the bookstore, and possibly Mr. Ollivander if we can't find everything we need at the first two places."

"Am I getting a wand then?"

It wasn't unheard of in wizarding families to give children wands when they first started to show magical ability. In Katerina's case, she had been showing her talents since she was a few weeks old, but the Malfoy's had decided to wait and see what their adopted daughter would be like before giving her what could possibly become her greatest weapon.

"Yes. I think it is an appropriate present."

"Then we should go to Mr. Ollivander first!" She was fidgeting with excitement as Narcissa buttoned the child's coat. "He's the wandmaker!"

"Katerina, you do know of the tradition of first offering children the wands of deceased parents, correct?"

"Yes."

"You do remember who your father is, correct."

She looked at the ground. "Yes, Mother."

"His wand is very distinctive, as is my sister's. I want to offer both to you, but I need Mr. Borgin to see if he can take the handle from your father's wand before we go to Mr. Ollivander. It appears like it will come off, just like the snake's head on Father's wand."

"But you're afraid to touch it, aren't you?"

Narcissa's hands stopped moving on the buttons. Draco had been the type of handful that required constant attention so he did not harm himself. This child… she was terrifying in a way that none of the Malfoys had ever been able to describe.

"I am afraid he would put a curse on it, yes."

"Then leave it on. His wand might not pick me anyway. If it doesn't, then we can just go to the bookstore and the pet store. I want some new toys for Merope."

"Katerina, you don't realize how powerful your father was."

The child narrowed her eyes. "Yes mother, I do."

After a bit of arguing, Narcissa stormed from Borgin and Burkes with the two wands shoved unceremoniously in a red velvet bag and dragging Katerina behind her with her free hand. Mr. Borgin had immediately panicked upon seeing the Dark Lord's wand and threatened to report Narcissa to the Ministry for having such a dangerous item in her possession.

To the passerby, it looked as if the mother and child were in the midst of an argument. That suited Narcissa just fine; they would be less likely to be stopped and questioned even though Katerina was struggling to keep pace.

Quickly, she pulled the child in to Ollivander's Wand Shoppe, raising her own wand to lock the door and turn the sign to closed. She was certain that Ollivander would remember her from his imprisonment from the war and she still wasn't certain if he would immediately call the Ministry because she was here.

Ollivander was her only chance; if he held true to his nature, he would find it curious that not only had the Dark Lord's wand been recovered, but that it was going to be given to a child.

"Gimme a second… Gotta put boxes away…There." Ollivander sighed in relief as he clapped his hands on his pant legs to clean the dust from his fingers. "How can I help…" His eyes fell upon Narcissa's haughty face, then moved to the child standing next to her. "Merlin. I'm going to have to ask you to leave, Mrs. Malfoy."

Narcissa did not flinch. "I need you to check if my daughter would be able to use either of these wands. You know the routine; you will tell me if she's capable of handling them or if we should buy a new one. Her birthday is coming up, and she will be turning seven. Draco received his wand at that age. I'd like Katerina to be the same."

Ollivander eyed the child. "I'm assuming she's from your family, not your husband's."

"That is correct. I adopted her because her parents both died in the war." Her hand gently pushed Katerina forward. "This is Katerina."

Katerina bowed politely to Ollivander. "Pleased to meet you, sir. Mother has said you are a genius with wands and wandmaking. I would appreciate it if you could help us."

Ollivander's eyes still had not left the child. "She's silver-tongued, much like Lucius." He moved slowly to the counter and pulled a magnifying lens over his glasses. "Set the wands on the counter. Let me have a look."

"I want you to promise me, Ollivander, that you will not breathe one word of what I'm about to show you to anyone."

"Dear, Bellatrix Lestrange deserved to die for what she did to muggles and wizards alike during both wars. Her wand will not be suitable for this child; it has killed far too many. If you are keeping it as a memento, that is your foolish choice."

"But if I were to bring Bellatrix's wand out, would you call the Ministry?"

Ollivander looked directly in to her eyes, the one magnified by the lens looking a bit comical on his face. "I swear I do not speak of what wands I have seen and produced, for I was the one that-"

Ollivander fell silent as the wand belonging to Lord Voldemort was pulled from the pouch and placed upon the counter in front of him. Bellatrix's curved wand was soon placed next to it, but it was obvious that his full attention lay on the Dark Lord's weapon.

"Merlin, you plan on giving this to a child?"

"It does not have an owner. And as you know its brother defeated the Dark Lord on one occasion. The materials in this wand wand do not necessarily lend themselves to evil."

"But a child! Don't you understand what people will think!"

"If the wand chooses Katerina, I want you to remove the bone from the end."

"You can't be serious!"

Narcissa only folded her arms, glaring at the elderly wandmaker. He only sighed, remembering his imprisonment and how far the Malfoy's influence could reach. They were the only Death Eaters that escaped Azkaban and were able to keep their normal life after the war's end. The Prophet had said because Narcissa had been the one to betray the Dark Lord and help Harry Potter survive, the Ministry had granted the whole family a full pardon. Unofficially, it was assumed that a large amount of gold exchanged hands.

"Well, get up here girl. Use the curved one first."

Katerina looked back to Narcissa, who only nodded her approval. They were Malfoys, after all. Neither could be seen as emotional beings in public.

With a sigh, she reached up to the counter and grabbed Bellatrix's wand. She had been instructed on what to do for Mr. Ollivander to determine her ability with the wand, and she gave it a flick.

The two adults continued to stare at her as she flicked the wand two, three times.

"Like I said, I did not think a wand that has killed in cold blood would be suited for a child. There is no need to test the other."

"She will test it."

"Mrs. Malfoy, I beg-"

Narcissa's own wand was out, pointing at the elderly man's chest. "She will test the wand, now." Her eyes flicked to Katerina, who was transfixed by the scene in front of her. Mother never made a scene; the girl could barely contain her excitement as she watched Ollivander squirming beneath the wand. "Katerina, take His wand. Try it. Let Mr. Ollivander see if his theory is correct."

"Yes Mother."

A small hand wrapped gently around the bone handle, carefully testing the weight and leverage of the holly and phoenix wand. She closed her eyes; a warmth passed through her body, sending shivers through her arms and legs.

"Flick the wand."

She barely heard Narcissa's voice as magic continued to enter her body. The warmth; the power… she understood what had drawn her sire to this unremarkable piece of wood. Her hand moved on its own accord, and as the red light emerged from the tip she was knocked backwards, landing unceremoniously on her back as wand boxes fell upon the trio.

"Merlin…" Both adults said unison. Narcissa's wand hand had slipped to her side, but Ollivander did not move.

"Even You-Know-Who didn't do that much with the wand when it first chose him."

Katerina stood from the pile of boxes, looking upon the wand with a profound sense of reverence. "My mother would be proud, wouldn't she Mother?" The child's face looked older, paler… and her eyes. Narcissa hated when they began glow with a faint red light. She had always dismissed the image as a trick of light, but here, in this well-lit shop with one of the most notorious wands in the history of wizards in her hands, she wondered how much of the father was truly in the child.

"She'd be thrilled, love."

"Then this is to be mine?"

"NO!" Ollivander hurried to the child, grabbing her shoulders and shaking her hard. "I won't let her leave with this wand! I don't care if you've been keeping it for years, Mrs. Malfoy, it needs to be destroyed! The wand is evil, like the wizard who owned it!"

"That wizard was a great man, Mr. Ollivander." The child growled, her face twisted with both amusement and anger; the wand still raised as if she would soon be dueling.

"Let her go!" Narcissa shrieked in the background, her wand aimed at the child, but it was too late. With a hiss and a flash of green light, Mr. Ollivander fell to the ground never to move again. The blond was trembling as the realization of what had just occurred began to replay through her mind; an untrained child had not only just issued a spell in Parseltongue, but that spell happened to be the Killing Curse.

"Mommy?" Katerina's small hand tugged at Narcissa's skirt. "What happened? Is Mr. Ollivander ok?"

"I… He'll be fine." She grabbed the wand from the girl, stowing it back in the pouch, grabbing Bellatrix's wand as an afterthought. "Hurry. I forgot that I promised Lucius that he and I were going to have the night alone, and I need to go prepare. Do you want to help Draco and Astoria unpack? Or how about you go visit Teddy?"

Katerina wasn't quite sure as to why Narcissa was behaving like this, but allowed herself to be scooped into her mother's arms as they exited the shop, burying her face in Narcissa's hair. She knew better than to reply.

"It doesn't matter. I'll find a place for you to stay tonight."

With a loud crack, the pair apparated far away from Diagon Alley before the crime could be discovered.


End file.
